This Instant Pot Pot Roast recipe is an easy, comforting dinner that comes together so quickly in the pressure cooker! With tender veggies (not mushy!), a fall apart tender roast and seasoned gravy. With step by step VIDEO
This recipe was originally posted in 2018, but has been updated to include new step by step photos and video.
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September is one of the best months of the year, and not just because it’s my birthday month. It means that things like this Instant Pot Pot Roast are back on the table.
Comfort foods, especially those that are healthy and nourish our bodies, are my favorite kinds of meals!
This Potato Soup, this Rigatoni Pasta Bake, and so many of these Easy Crockpot Meals are popping up on our table again and again (and no one’s mad about it).
When the weather starts cooling off, there is just nothing like a cozy meal to gather around with the family — especially if it’s cooking in the Instant Pot, hands off!
This Instant Pot Roast comes out perfectly cooked and has the best gravy (just check out the reviews below!), plus no mushy vegetables to speak of!
You can even throw the roast in completely frozen if you’ve got a little extra time to let it cook (and it turns out just as great as these Frozen Chicken Breasts in the Instant Pot and this Instant Pot Whole Chicken you can cook from frozen as well!)
Why we love this Pressure Cooker Pot Roast!
This Instant Pot Roast is so tender it falls apart when you try to take it out. It has such great flavor, that you can even skip the searing if you want (I’ll be honest, I am often to lazy to sear my meat first!).
One thing it is missing? Mushy vegetables.
Vegetables in the Instant Pot cook very quickly, often just a few minutes or less, so it’s better to leave them out while the roast cooks, and add them later at the end.
I know that this is an extra step and you might be wondering if it’s worth it.
Trust me on this one.
This way, you will have a perfectly juicy and tender pot roast, and perfectly cooked but still totally appetizing veggies.
You know I’m not into any extra unnecessary steps (or dishes, or ingredients!), but the potatoes and carrots will cook in just a few minutes and if you buy small, pre-washed potatoes, you don’t even need to chop them.
How to make Instant Pot Pot Roast:
- Season and sear: Cut your roast beef into roughly 1 pound pieces and coat them with the seasoning blend. Meanwhile, turn your Instant Pot to saute, and brown each piece in oil on every side. You can skip this step, but I find it does add a lot of flavor and helps to keep the juices in the meat.
- Remove the beef and cook the onions: cooking the onions adds another layer of flavor to our gravy! Then add the garlic and cook just a minute, so that it doesn’t burn.
- Deglaze the pot: Add the rest of the gravy ingredients (still on saute). Scrape the bottom of the Instant Pot with a wooden spoon to remove any bits that might be stuck on the bottom.
- Add the roast and pressure cook until tender: If your roast is cut into 1 lb chunks, it shouldn’t matter how large it was to begin with — they will all cook in about the same amount of time. I cook mine for 60-65 minutes. Depending on the type of roast you have and how you like your meat cooked, you may want to add additional time.
- Let the pressure release and add the vegetables: at this point you have the option to remove the roast if it is cooked and tender, and shred it while the vegetables cook, or just add the vegetables on top of the roast.
- Once everything is cooked, let the pressure release again and serve: Letting the pressure release naturally, completely (turning it off and not opening the valve until the pin goes down on its own) is the best way to ensure moist and juicy pot roast. Once the pressure is released, open it up and thicken the gravy on saute if desired.
Combine seasoning blend and rub over roast Sear roast in Instant Pot on saute Remove beef and saute onions Deglaze the pot with broth and add gravy ingredients Add roast back into the liquid and pressure cook Remove the roast and pressure cook the potatoes and carrots
Instant Pot Pot Roast FAQs
The short answer? About 1 hour.
The long answer:How long a roast will need to be pressure cooked depends mostly on how large the roast or the pieces are that you cut it into. I prefer to cut my roasts into chunks that are approximately 1 lb in size (so if you have a 3lb roast, you’ll cut it into 3 pieces).
However, the cook time also depends on the thickness of the pieces, so there has to be some wiggle room. To be on the safe side, you can always allow for a little extra time pressure cooking the meat — I opt for about 1 hour pressure cooking on high for smaller pieces.
If your roast is frozen, or it is in one large piece, you will want to add a significant amount of time to ensure that your meat is fall apart tender.
Absolutely!
Increase the cook time to 90-100 minutes for a 3 lb roast, and 100-110 minutes for a 4 lb roast, and 120 minutes for anything larger than 4 pounds.
You won’t sear a frozen roast, but you can sprinkle the seasoning on and add the liquids as the recipe calls for below.
Chances are, it just hasn’t cooked long enough. A beef roast will safe to cook long before it is tender, so giving it a little extra time doesn’t hurt anything.
I like to cut my pot roast into smaller chunks so that it cooks and tenderizes more quickly. If you are using a less-than-ideal type of roast (something lean with not much fat), you may want to cut it into even smaller pieces.
It’s up to you! I don’t usually trim much, as the fat makes the roast so juicy as it cooks. It can easily be trimmed once it is cooked.
If you prefer less fat cooking with your fat, you can trim the larger pieces.
Tips for making the best Instant Pot Pot Roast:
- Like I mentioned before, please do not add the veggies for the first cook time. You do not want your veggies cooking an extra 60+ minutes under high pressure! 3 minutes and they are perfectly tender and fluffy.
- You can skip searing the meat if you need to cut out some prep time, but it does add significant flavor to the dish overall. If you don’t sear, you’ll find that your juices (and therefore gravy if you thicken it) will be more “beefy” and you will taste less of the other flavors.
- If you need to save some time, cut the roast into 2-3″ chunks and pressure cook for 40-50 minutes, or save even more time by using pre-cut stewing beef.
- All of my Instant Pot recipes are tested in a 6 quart Instant Pot.
Looking for more Instant Pot dinner recipes?
- Instant Pot Honey Garlic Pork Tenderloin & Potatoes
- Juicy Instant Pot Chicken Breast
- Creamy Italian Instant Pot Chicken Breasts
- Easy Instant Pot Baked Ziti Recipe
Instant Pot Pot Roast
written by Ashley Fehr
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons seasoning salt (I use Lawry’s)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 3 lb beef chuck roast cut into 1lb chunks
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 medium onion (finely chopped)
- 3 garlic cloves (finely minced)
- 2 cups low sodium beef broth
- 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 ½ lb Creamer potatoes (or baby potatoes) whole
- 3 large carrots peeled and cut into thick slices
- 1 tablespoon ketchup (or honey)
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
- 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine seasoning salt, garlic, parsley, onion powder and pepper. Sprinkle over roast to season.
- Turn Instant Pot to saute. When it reads hot, add the oil and sear roast on all sides. To do this, place the roast in the pot and do not move for 2-3 minutes. When you flip it, it should release from the pan easily. You may need to add extra oil to brown all of the pieces and cook them in 2 batches. When browned, removed the meat from the Instant Pot.
- Add the onion and cook, stirring, until softened (adding more oil if necessary). Add the garlic and cook 1 minute.
- To the Instant Pot add broth, vinegar, tomato paste, and Worcestershire sauce — if there are brown bits stuck to the bottom from the meat, give them a scrape with a wooden spoon and they should release easily — this will help to prevent a burn message. Stir to combine.
- Add the meat back into the pot. Put the lid on and turn the valve to sealing. Select Manual or Pressure Cook and set the cook time for 65 minutes on high pressure (90-100 minutes for a frozen roast).
- When the cook time is over, turn the Instant Pot off and let the pressure release naturally (this should take 10-15 minutes) before turning the valve to venting and opening the lid.
- Remove the roast to a plate, cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Add the potatoes and carrots, put the lid back on, turn the valve to sealing and select Manual or Pressure Cook for 3 minutes.
- While the potatoes and carrots cook, shred the beef and keep warm.
- When the cook time is over, let pressure release naturally for 5 minutes before moving the valve to venting, gradually releasing remaining pressure and opening the lid.
- Remove potatoes and carrots from Instant Pot and place on a platter with the beef.
- Stir in ketchup (it's not necessary but as a nice brightness and contrast to the savory flavor of the beef). Whisk together corn starch and water and stir into gravy.
- Turn Instant Pot to saute and cook, stirring often, until gravy has thickened. Serve with roast beef and vegetables.
Notes
- I added a sauteed onion and garlic to the gravy. You can skip this if you didn’t miss it 🙂
- I increased the broth to 2 cups from 1 cup — this gives us more gravy! I also increase the vinegar, tomato paste and Worcestershire sauce to match.
- I removed the roast after pressure cooking to add the potatoes and carrots, but you can still do it either way. This way, the roast has time to rest and we can shred it while the vegetables cook.
- I added a tablespoon of ketchup to the gravy — this just brightens the flavors and adds a subtle touch of sweetness.
Nutrition Information
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Cesar F. says
Great Recipe! I’m a new Instapot cook. It turned out great. Very easy and directions are easy to understand.
Liz says
Do you have any recommendations for how to make this with a regular crock pot? I don’t have an InstaPot but it looks so yummy!
Ashley Fehr says
Yep! Right here:https://www.thereciperebel.com/slow-cooker-pot-roast/
Irina says
Do you have any recommendations if I want to double the recipe? How long would I cook it for?
Ashley Fehr says
The cook time should be the same as long as the pieces are the same size
Jess says
I absolutely love this recipe. The flavors are ON POINT.
Estee says
This was a really great, easy to prepare recipe. I added some more veggies like celery and a can of tomatoes! Total winner.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Estee! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Jeru Marshall says
This recipe was a total hit in my house. Everyone e loved it! Even my picky 11 year old daughter!! Thanks for sharing!!
Ashley Fehr says
I’m so happy to hear that!
kristin penland says
This recipe is insanely delish and easy to make! I normally don’t like pot roast meals and I’m use to complicated Ina Garten recipes and spending all day in the kitchen….this was so good and elevated enough for a dinner get together!
The only thing I didn’t do was add the cornstarch – we prefer the broth over gravy. Otherwise followed the recipe exactly as written.
This is a winner!
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Kristin! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you so much for this review!
Jan says
Very good! I followed exactly except instead of tomato paste I just used ketchup, instead of cornstarch I used my fav Wondra and I did 6 minutes for the veggies based on the comments PERFECT. Will make again for sure! Awesome recipe thank you.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Jan! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review and the feedback on substitutions!
Jeanne says
Excellent results, thanks!
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Jeanne! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Priscilla Silva says
I had 1.5lbs of chuck roast so I pretty much followed everything in half and it came out delicious!!! I will definitely be doing this recipe again!
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Priscilla! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Dennis says
Just made this. My daughter said she likes this alot, alot alot. She said she even loved the potatoes and she doesn’t like cooked potatoes. I also loved this. Excellent recipe. Now to try it with venison.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Dennis! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this review!
sweingold@gmail.com says
This is probably the best Instant Pot recipe I have ever done. The meat was perfect and the gravy was phenomenal! I only had one small issue that the 3 minutes pressure cook for the veggies was too short, for me anyway. Anticipating this, I even bumped it up to 4 minutes with the 5 minute natural release and the tiny new gold potatoes were still somewhat under cooked and the carrots were pretty crunchy. Next time I do this recipe, I will bump the final veggie pressure cook to 6 minutes.
Angela says
I have just about given up my cookbooks once I realized how easy it is to just search online for whatever you want to make. When I came across your recipe I thought I’d give it a try. Oh my gosh; the rest was history. I made a pot roast from another recipe I had found but deleted it once I made yours. The time was absolutely on point. I thought the vegetables would not be tender and the roast not done but I was wrong. I even tweaked it according to your updated notes.Everything turned out wonderfully; thank you. I’ll be trying some of your other recipes too.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Angela! So glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for your review!
Michelle says
I have made this recipe more times than I can count! I love how tender the meat and veggies come out. It’s one of our favorites as a family and we make it at least once a month. Thanks so much for sharing it!!
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Michelle! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!